Considering the characteristics of aldehydes among volatile organic compounds, a combined process was established by linking an absorbent and a photocatalytic reactor. Experiments to find the optimal operating conditions of the combined process showed that as the amount of photocatalyst coating increases, the wavelength of the ultraviolet lamp used becomes shorter, the photodegradation rate becomes faster, and the removal efficiency increases. It was also demonstrated that by controlling the relative humidity during the connection process of the combined process, the re-evaporation phenomenon at the front end (absorption area) of the hybrid process can be improved and the removal efficiency at the back end (photocatalytic reaction area) can be significantly enhanced. This confirmed the need for a combined process that complements the advantages and disadvantages of each process.

Oysters are the most widely produced shellfish culture in Korea and 90% of their weight. Main component of oyster shell is CaCO3 and an appropriate calcination temperature was derived using thermo-gravimetric analysis. The difference in components for each calcination temperature was confirmed and the adsorbent was manufactured by activation. The oyster shell adsorbent surface area was 5.72m2/g with pores in the mesopore range. The adsorption amount was 37.44 mg/g. Therefore, the possibility of using oyster shell as an adsorbent was confirmed.

This study was performed to investigate the effects of water molecules on ozone oxidation of acetaldehyde using a manganese oxide catalyst at room temperature. The catalytic ozone oxidation was conducted at different relative humidity (RH) conditions of 0%, 50%, and 80%. As the RH increased, both ozone and acetaldehyde removal efficiencies dropped due to competitive adsorption on the surface of the catalyst. At the highest RH of 80%, the oxidation reaction was severely retarded, and oxidation by-products such as acetic acid were formed and adsorbed on the surface. After the ozone oxidation of acetaldehyde, the regeneration of the catalyst using ozone alone was tested, and the further oxidation of accumulated organic compounds was investigated under the RH conditions of 0%, 50%, and 80%. When the highest relative humidity was introduced in the regeneration step, the ozonation reaction with the by-products adsorbed on the catalyst surface decreased due to the competitive reaction with water molecules. These findings revealed that, only when relative humidity was low to minimize the formation of by-products, the ozone oxidation of acetaldehyde using the manganese oxide catalyst at room temperature can be feasible as an effective control method.

In this study, a manganese catalyst on the surface of a ceramic support was developed for the removal of odor emitted from barbecuing restaurants. Its ozone oxidation at room temperature was tested using acetaldehyde (CH3CHO), the most dominant compound in the barbecuing odor, and the ozonation efficiency under wet conditions was also studied. The manganese catalyst was made with the honeycomb-type ceramic support, and an acid pretreatment was applied to increase its specific surface area, resulting in an increase of the degree of dispersion of manganese oxide. The acetaldehyde removal efficiency using the manganese catalyst on the acidpretreated support (Mn/APS) increased by 49%, and the ozone decomposition rate and the CO2 conversion rate also increased by 41% and 27%, respectively. The catalyst without surface pretreatment (Mn/S) showed a low efficiency for the acetaldehyde ozonation, and other organic compounds such as acetic acid (CH3COOH) and nonanal (CH3(CH3)7CHO) were found as oxidation by-products. In comparison, CO2 was the most dominant product by the ozonation of acetaldehyde using the Mn/APS. When the relative humidity was increased to 50% in the influent gas stream, the acetaldehyde removal efficiency using the Mn/APS decreased, but only the production rates of CO2 and acetic acid were changed. As a result, the manganese oxide catalyst on the surface of the acid-pretreated honeycomb support manifested high acetaldehyde ozonation even at humid and room temperature conditions.

The Odor-causing compounds from grilled meat restaurants are mainly ammonia, aldehydes, and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Acetaldehyde is known to have the greatest odor contribution. This study examines the application of silica gel for acetaldehyde in gas stream. Heat-pretreated silica gel showed relatively good adsorption performance and at 150oC, its breakthrough capacity reached up to 51 mg/g. By using Thomas' dynamic model, which well estimated the adsorption performance in this study, the effects of inlet concentration and retention time on adsorption capacity were evaluated. The adsorbent saturated with acetaldehyde was regenerated by reducing the pressure, which was controlled by the vacuum pump. The design factors were found to be 10 sec−1 of space velocity, -184 kPa·hr of desorption condition, and 10 to 1 of the ratio of cross sectional area to the height for the fixed-bed. The cyclic operation of adsorption and desorption step in the fixed bed packed with silica gel appeared to have 7.0-8.8 mg/g of acetaldehyde removal capacity and 99% of regeneration.

To abate the problem of odor from restaurants, a hybrid adsorbent consisting of organic and inorganic materials was developed and evaluated using acetaldehyde as a model compound was deveioped and evaluated. Powders of activated carbon, bentonite, and calcium hydroxide were mixed and calcinated to form adsorbent structure. The surface area of the hybrid adsorbent was smaller than that of high-quality activated carbon, but its microscopic image showed that contours and pores were developed on its surface. To determine its adsorption capacity, both batch isotherm and continuous flow column experiments were performed, and these results were compared with those using commercially available activated carbon. The isotherm tests showed that the hybrid adsorbent had a capacity 40 times higher than that of the activated carbon. In addition, the column experiments revealed that breakthrough time of the hybrid adsorbent was 2.5 times longer than that of the activated carbon. These experimental results were fitted to numerical simulations by using a homogeneous surface diffusion model (HSDM); the model estimated that the hybrid adsorbent might be able to remove acetaldehyde at a concentration of 40 ppm for a 5-month period. Since various odor compounds are commonly emitted as a mixture when meat is barbecued, it is necessary to conduct a series of experiments and HSDM simulations under various conditions to obtain design parameters for a full-scale device using the hybrid adsorbent.

In this study, we attempted to evaluate the relationship between dilution‐to‐threshold (D/T) ratio derived by air dilution sensory (ADS) test and the concentration levels of both individual odorant (using H₂S and acetaldehyde (AA)) and their mixture. For the purpose of our comparative study, we prepared both standard gases of two individual compounds and their mixture at 9 concentration levels. Each of all these samples were analyzed by ADS test, and the results were analyzed in relation to their odor intensity. The results of individual odorant samples showed the two contrasting characteristics of each individual compound. H2S generally showed sensitive detection at low concentration but less sensitive detection with increasing concentration. In contrast, AA showed fairly contrasting trend with slow increasing sensitivity. When the D/T ratios estimated from individual samples were used to predict those of mixed samples, the results were reflecting the mixed effects of the basic characteristics owned by each individual compound. As the lower and upper odor intensities of mixed samples were best reflected by AA and H2S, respectively, the D/T ratio of mixed samples complied with the larger D/T values of each compound at a given odor intensity.